AMERICA accused Iran yesterday of trying to adapt its latest ballistic missile to carry nuclear warheads capable of hitting targets as far away as Israel and Cyprus.

In the latest round in the continuing war of words between Washington and Tehran, Colin Powell, the outgoing US Secretary of State, said that he had information that the Iranians were trying to produce “delivery systems” for an atomic bomb.

The Bush Administration has repeatedly accused Iran of using its nuclear energy programme to screen its real aim of producing an atomic bomb. The Iranians deny it and the issue is expected to be hotly debated next week at a meeting of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

Speaking during a trip to South America, Mr Powell raised the stakes by accusing Tehran of trying to build “delivery systems” for a future nuclear weapon. “You do not have a weapon until you put it in something that can deliver a weapon,” he said.

“I am talking about information that says they not only have these missiles, but I am aware of information that suggests that they were working hard to put the two together.”

Experts believe that he was referring to the Shahab-3, a medium-range ballistic missile with a range of more than 800 miles that could hit cities such as Tel Aviv, Nicosia and Ankara.

Andrew Brookes, an expert on missile technology at the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS), said that Iran was locked in an arms race with Israel, the only nuclear power in the region, which can launch atomic weapons from land, sea and air.

The Shahab-3, which means meteor in Farsi, was successfully test-fired two years ago and put into service with the elite Revolutionary Guards. Ali Shamkhani, the Iranian Defence Minister, said this week that the country was now ready to mass-produce the weapon.

The latest estimates by the IISS, however, suggest that the Iranians have only about six of the missiles, which are modern versions of the Soviet-era Scud.

Mr Brookes said that adapting the projectile to carry a compact, workable and reliable nuclear warhead would require big technological advances by the Iranians. “That is what the Iranians are working on, but I suspect they are a considerable way from having a workable warhead,” he told The Times.

Speculation over the missile coincided with fresh allegations by an Iranian opposition group that Iran has already acquired blueprints for a nuclear bomb and fissile material.

The National Council of Resistance of Iran said on Wednesday that the Iranians bought the weapons-grade uranium and the bomb design from Abdul Qadeer Khan, the father of Pakistan’s atomic bomb, who was accused of selling the technology to clients around the world. “He gave them the same weapons design he gave the Libyans, (and) more in terms of weapons design,” Farid Soleimani, a senior member of the group, said.

Mr Powell said that he had “seen intelligence that would corroborate what this dissident group is saying”, but the allegations were rejected by Iran and Pakistan.

Iran has reached an agreement with Britain, France and Germany to suspend its nuclear-enrichment programme in exchange for political and economic incentives. The deal is supposed to come into effect next week.

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